Beleaguered in Pekin 10

Beleaguered in Pekin 10

When I heard of this sad affair, an hour after its occurrence, I could

scarcely believe that my friend who had welcomed me to China in 1885

had come to such a cruel end. He had not an enemy in the world, and was

uniformly gentle and considerate. His fate, following so closely upon

Baron von Ketteler’s, the first day of our siege, cast a deep gloom

over the entire community.

 

Promptly at 4 P.M. the Chinese soldiers opened fire upon all the

legations from behind the surrounding houses; but, very fortunately

for us, most of their bullets flew high and went entirely over the

legation district and must have injured Chinese residents in Peking at

a distance.

 

The British legation inside presented a scene of greatest confusion.

Eatables and tinned stores of every description had been hastily dumped

by coolies into all parts of the compound. Men, women, and children

were busy for some hours trying to identify and collect the little

stores they had brought or sent in, with the idea that a few days’

provision would be all that would be necessary, as no one believed

that Admiral Seymour, Colonel Wogack, and Captain McCalla would be

longer than a week at most in relieving us.

 

Little did we imagine that many weeks of siege under shot, shell, and

rifle-fire must be endured, with absolutely no word from the outside

world, before we, or at least such of us as survived, would again come

forth.

 

Many had left their homes hurriedly, taking with them nothing but the

clothes they wore. Having left my own house one week previous, and gone

to the United States legation as a guest with my family, I had been

requested not to bring in any supply of provisions, as it would alarm

people, and it was hoped quiet would be restored in a few days.

 

When obliged by the Chinese ultimatum to leave Peking or, as we decided

after Baron von Ketteler’s murder, to take refuge in the British

legation and await reinforcements, it was too late to visit my home

outside of the foreign lines and remove anything from my storeroom.

 

Fortunately for my little family, Mr. H. G. Squiers, as I have

mentioned, had laid in an abundant supply of rice, flour, and other

stores, and he offered, if I would undertake to move all his stores

safely to the British legation, to contribute to my needs. This I was

only too glad to do; so, taking two of his servants and the only two

of mine who, out of nine, had remained faithful, I worked from 9 A.M.

until 4 P.M. removing Squiers’ stores to the British legation.

 

[Illustration: VIEW FROM THE WALL OF PEKING SHOWING SCENE OF]

 

[Illustration: THE BLOCKADE AND OTHER POINTS OF SPECIAL INTEREST

 

1.—The prominent building at this point is the British Legation,

practically the headquarters of the defense. 2.—This high wall,

extending the entire length of the picture, marks the boundary of the

“Forbidden City”; at the point indicated, the Krupp guns, mentioned

in the narrative, were mounted, giving them a sweeping range of

Legation street. 3.—The residence of the author after the siege, his

own property having been so badly damaged by the mob as to make it

untenantable. 4.—The roof of the American Legation (in another picture

is shown a view of the Legation itself). 5.—The Russian Legation,

another of the most important points in the foreign field of defense.

6.—Bridge over the canal at Legation street. The foul and stagnant

water in the canal and the filth in its bed are plainly shown. 7.—The

roofs of the Emperor’s palace and “Forbidden City” and other portions

of some of the buildings appear above the wall that surrounds it. It

will be noticed that, while strictly barred out from the “Forbidden

City” and the palace of the Emperor, the foreign legations were

nevertheless within a comparatively short distance. 8.—The top of what

is known as the “Coal Hill,” in the Imperial grounds of the “Forbidden

City,” shows over the top of the wall. This hill is a vast supply of

coal, which has been accumulating for hundreds of years. It is entirely

without shelter, and there seems to be no authentic history to account

for its inception, nor any special reason for its continuance; but

here, in the most sacred place in the Chinese kingdom, right in the

magnificent palace grounds of the Emperor, this ugly, unsightly pile

of coal, covering several acres in extent and rising, as can be seen

by the picture, to a very considerable height, washed by the rains and

seamed by the upheavals of the frosts of winter, continues to exist, as

it has done from time immemorial.]

 

I purchased, also, from one of the foreign stores within the lines of

defense two dozen tins of condensed milk and four tins of baked beans,

a very inadequate provision to feed six children and two adults for two

months.

 

Many others were as poorly provided for as myself; but, providentially,

within the region we had adopted as our lines of defense, were several

large grain shops full of rice, wheat, and millet. Our carts were kept

busy for several days hauling these supplies into the English legation,

where they were placed in charge of a commissary officer and issued out

as needed.

 

We thus had sufficient grain, not only for all the foreigners, but also

for the two thousand odd refugees, coolies, and servants, who had, from

one motive or another, cast their lot with us. From the grain shops,

too, we brought in their millstones, and, as we had altogether over

one hundred and fifty mules and horses, we started up a ten-mule-power

mill, which ground out flour all day for the needs of the besieged.

 

Being occupied daily with the sanitary work and attendance on the sick,

I was unable to keep much of a diary, so I instructed my son Robert,

aged sixteen, to do so for me, and the following transcription of his

diary gives the events of our daily life until the end of the siege.

 

June 21. Most of the Chinese coolies and many foreigners were set right

at work filling sand-bags for fortifying all the weak places in the

legation, while the women, with needle and thread and the few sewing

machines inside the compound, manufactured the bags by the thousand.

This was kept up until 20,000 to 25,000 sand-bags were made.

 

The Belgian legation and the Methodist mission were set fire to and

completely burned. Tung Lu’s troops kept up a desultory fusillade upon

us all day, but scarcely any of the bullets took effect.

 

It was reported that Prince Ching’s troops were firing on the Boxers,

who were attacking the customs compound and Austrian legation. This

report was afterward proved false. The French were driven from their

barricade in the customs lane into the French legation compound.

 

The Chinese set fire to a native house just in the rear of Mr.

Cockburn’s house, hoping it would catch to the latter place. It was

very near, and, as the wind was strong, was only prevented with the

greatest difficulty from spreading into the legation. It was put out at

last, after two hours’ hard fighting.

 

Some of the marines stationed as watchmen on the roof of the Cockburn

house had seen Chinamen sneaking around with rags soaked in kerosene

and had fired on them, but had not succeeded in preventing the fire

being set.

 

The Austrians, Italians, Germans, and Japanese were forced by the heavy

firing to leave their legations and come here. The Americans also

started, but were sent back. The Austrians and Italians were never able

to retake their legations, but the Germans and Japanese returned very

shortly to theirs. The Germans found a Boxer prisoner missing on their

return on the 23d of June.

 

A fire was started just outside the north wall of the compound at

10 A.M., which was put out, or thought to have been put out; but it

broke out again in the afternoon, this time burning a part of the

Hanlin Library, adjoining the legation on the north. The conflagration

was separated from the legation by only one narrow court, so one of

the buildings in the court was pulled down to prevent its spreading.

Thousands of wooden printing blocks were thrown into the fire to get

rid of all combustible material in the immediate neighborhood. These

blocks represent days of labor each, and were used in printing valuable

(to the Chinese) books. Many valuable books also perished in the

flames. At night a guard was placed in the Hanlin yuan, or garden, to

watch the smoking remains, and, as this point is of greatest strategic

importance, barricades will be erected here and the position maintained.

 

June 22. The customs compound and Austrian legation were burned, the

Austrians remaining in the French legation to help them there. The back

part of the Russo-Chinese bank compound was burned, also a house in

the Japanese legation, which latter fire was soon subdued. A discharge

of shrapnel from a gun on the city wall struck the gate house of the

United States legation, and cut down the flag-pole, tearing a large

hole in the roof, but hurting no one.

 

At 7 P.M. a house near the Hotel de Pein was burned. In this house

two Boxers were captured. When seen, they threw down their swords and

attempted to escape, but were caught and brought into the British

legation to be locked up.

 

The fortifying operations are being pushed forward vigorously under the

excellent management of Mr. F. D. Gamewell. He is the one man competent

to take charge of affairs here, as the British., although in their

own legation, and knowing that the place was to be the last place of

refuge, had not done a stroke of work toward fortifying it, and seemed

to be as helpless as children.

 

[Illustration: PORTION OF CHINA’S GREAT WALL

 

Showing one of the towers or forts, which are built at intervals

throughout its entire length.]

 

June 24. At ten minutes past midnight the Chinese began a furious

fusillade from all quarters, and an alarm was rung from the bell-tower,

notifying all of a general attack. But after about twenty minutes

of prodigious noise, with almost no damage done, the firing ceased

as suddenly as it had commenced, and the rest of the night was

comparatively quiet. About 10 A.M. a fire was started outside and

adjoining the south stables, which, after heroic exertions upon the

part of nearly the entire garrison of men, women, and coolies, all of

whom formed into line and passed hundreds of buckets of water from

the two nearest wells to the scene of the fire, was subdued without

our stables catching fire. With every one of these fires that was

successfully put out, the danger from that source was lessened.

 

The German and American marines took possession of the city wall south

of their respective legations, to prevent the Chinese from bringing

their heavy guns too near and too directly able to bear upon the

legations. Thrice they were driven back by the heavy fire, but they

stuck to their task, and eventually obtained each a position on the

wall—the Germans to the east, the Americans to the west, the two

positions being about six hundred yards apart.

 

The second time they advanced, the Americans took the Colt machine

gun with them, and, advancing almost to the Chinese barricade, killed

several hundred Chinese. The third time, the Americans advanced several

hundred yards and then retreated suddenly, as though panic-stricken.

This brought the Chinese out from behind their barricades with a rush,

when the Colt gun was again turned loose on them and killed sixty more.

 

After this the shelling got so hot that the position became absolutely

untenable. A piece of shell struck the shoulder-piece of the Colt

gun, and another shell, striking the wall, knocked down the bricks so

thickly around the gun that Mitchell, the gunner, thought he might have to abandon it; but, hastily taking it apart, he managed to get it down the ramp, and brought it safely into the British legation.